Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Buys 431,443 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. grew its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 8,337.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 436,618 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 431,443 shares during the quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $46,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new position in Albemarle in the second quarter valued at $358,101,000. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Albemarle by 69.7% during the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,436,117 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $151,912,000 after purchasing an additional 589,787 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth about $131,049,000. Amundi increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 40.5% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 827,874 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $111,784,000 after purchasing an additional 238,774 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the second quarter worth approximately $103,268,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $93.62 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $103.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.56. Albemarle Corporation has a 1-year low of $89.77 and a 1-year high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.34.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 14.91%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.19) earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 10.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 18th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently 39.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 target price (down from $185.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Bank of America dropped their target price on Albemarle from $131.00 to $120.00 in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Zacks Research raised Albemarle from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 9th. Finally, HSBC dropped their price target on Albemarle from $230.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $152.63.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a specialty chemicals company that produces lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. Its products serve industries including energy storage, transportation, electronics, petroleum refining and pharmaceuticals. The company supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries and other applications. It also makes bromine-based products for uses such as flame retardants and water treatment, along with catalysts used in refining petroleum. Albemarle traces its history to 1887 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.